Monday, May 18, 2009

A Gift of Blue

“The greatest gift is a portion of thyself.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

It’s one thing to give a gift; it’s quite another to present it in a special way. That’s what I’m trying to do with a series of gifts I’m giving my siblings this year for Christmas. And this year I want to do something over the top. The purpose is to remind them to take time out for a bit of self-pampering—my sisters and brother work so very hard and think of themselves last.

Today I’m sharing a Tiffany-themed gift basket set slated to be under my sister Connie’s tree in December. And most every item stems from a tutorial I found online (see Resources at the end of this post).

First, I created the base of the gift basket. In this case, it’s simply a wood tray (you can find them at Jo-Ann’s or Michaels). Begin by sanding the tray, painting, and then sealing with a clear gloss. The paint is Eddie Bauer Sea Breeze EB8-2 for the Tiffany color and simple white for the trim, both purchased at Lowe’s. My inspiration was found at Chez La Vie blog.

The large bath powder puff is made using Minky fabric on one side. The idea and instructions come from The Natural Beauty Workshop. A tutorial written by Joanna Armour for Michael Miller’s blog Making it Fun was used to make a bath mitt. The fabric is exactly the right shade of blue for my project (found at Jo-Ann’s).

I made a therapeutic neck wrap using the fabulous fabric I found, flax seeds, and an inner bag made of white muslin. The outer bag can be removed for washing. This project also came from Making It Fun.

"T" is for Tiffany. I knit a small lace bag using Naturally Caron Spa silky soft bamboo blend yarn found at Jo-Ann’s. The color is Ocean Spray (#0005) and matches perfectly. The pattern is a free offering from Tina Hilton at Craft Stylish. I laced the top to make it a drawstring bag to hold the reusable eye make-up remover pads I made using a Sproutz tutorial.

A fun way to tag the gift basket is making a small 2 ½ by 3 ½-inch framed monogram. No tutorial was used for this, I simply created the monogram on my computer and printed it on glossy presentation paper before cutting out and framing it.

Here is everything together. I mentioned my planned trip to Tiffany’s on Saturday. Connie and I did indeed drool over all the wonders to be found and I got an idea of something she’d love to have. While she ventured into another store, I quick bought it to include in her gift basket. I may be utilizing Tiffany’s as my theme, but I really feel I should at least buy something from the store to thank them for their inspiration.

At Christmas, I’ll bag the whole gift using cellophane and tie it with a wide piece of ribbon found at Jo-Ann’s in the Tiffany color that matches the set. I’m not ready to seal it yet as I may add a bit here and there over the year. Sometimes I don’t know when to stop.

Amazing what a series of tutorials can look like if we find a way to give it a special cohesiveness. Tomorrow I’ll share my gift for my sister Carolyn. No worries, neither of them read my blog.

June, I was so looking forward to this post, and you did not disappoint (as usual). What a beautiful and thoughtful collection, and so useful! I tend to fizzle out by the time it comes to packaging and presentation, so the inspiration is appreciated. I bet your sis will love it!

What an awesome idea! I hope I can steal/copy/borrow/modify at least some portion of your idea for my own sisters :-) I have been lurking and enjoying your blog especially since I'm a fellow Arizonan (south of you, near Sierra Vista). Thanks for offering so much inspiration and pleasure!

I'm reading these in reverse order, but I love this just as much as the rest. I love these colours too because this is very similar to one of the key colours in my logo. June, you're a special person to create these amazing gift trays for your sisters -- and brother.

Oh June, it's wonderful! I especially love the knit bag - it's adorable and classy at the same time. Mom is really going to love it (I promise I won't say anything!). If I was half as creative as you, I'd be three times as creative as I am now. Great job!